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dana

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

4 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "dana", 4-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "dana" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "dana" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

Dana is aEnglishname. It means: An American surname. Pronounced /ˈdɑːnə/. It ranks #9,313 in English word frequency. Often confused with day and don.

Key facts for Dana
PropertyValue
HeadwordDana
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechName
IPA/ˈdɑːnə/
Letters4
Frequency rank#9,313
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of Dana in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for Dana is 4 letters long, classified as aname, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdɑːnə/. Corpus data places it at rank #9,313 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 5 documented wrong-spelling variants for Dana, with forms such as "adna", "daan", and "danna". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "day", "don", "DNA", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Of uncertain origin. Possibly from Dawnay, or else an altered form of Dan or Daniel. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is Dana, spelled D-A-N-A, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    An American surname.
  2. 2
    A unisex given name transferred from the surname, originally given in honor of Richard Henry Dana Jr.
  3. 3
    A town in Indiana; named for Charles Dana, a railroad official.
  4. 4
    A village in Illinois; named for Thomas Dana, a railroad official.
  5. 5
    A city in Iowa; named for Samuel Dana, an early settler.

Etymology

Of uncertain origin. Possibly from Dawnay, or else an altered form of Dan or Daniel.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: adna,daan,danna,ddana,dnaa

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for Dana

Misspelling Variants of "Dana"

adna4daan4danna5ddana5dnaa4
Misspelling Variants of "Dana"

Frequency rank: #9,313 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Dana"?
"Dana" is spelled D-A-N-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdɑːnə/.
What does "Dana" mean?
As a name, "Dana" means: An American surname.
What words are commonly confused with "Dana"?
"Dana" is commonly confused with "day", "don", "DNA". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Dana"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Dana" is /ˈdɑːnə/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "Dana"?
Of uncertain origin. Possibly from Dawnay, or else an altered form of Dan or Daniel. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter D in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.